France’s Interior Minister Laurent Nunez on Friday pledged to stamp out drug crime after shooters killed a 15-year-old in the western city of Nantes in a suspected settling of scores linked to dealing.
France is battling drug-fuelled violence in several cities, with dealing spots near residential buildings and gangs ensnaring teenagers into the trade.
The shooting on Thursday evening, which also wounded a 13-year-old and a 14-year-old, is the latest deadly incident that could be linked to trafficking in France in a week.
The 15-year-old was shot dead in the hall of a tower block in the working-class neighbourhood of Port-Boyer, the city’s prosecutor and a police source said.
“We will not lose this war” against drugs, Nunez said at the scene on Friday morning.
He told the press that the shooting was obviously linked to drug peddling, as it occurred on a “very sought-after” dealing spot.
But only the investigation could determine whether the teens hit had any link to the trade, he added.
“These dealing spots are set up in places where people live,” he said.
“There are young people passing through, who sometimes wait in a building’s hall because it’s raining. And then you have people who show up and open fire to intimidate, to scare, and now to kill. Obviously this is unacceptable,” he said.
‘Almost lost my son’
On Thursday night, residents were in shock in the northern neighbourhood of Port-Boyer.
“I’m so fed up,” said Paola, presenting herself as an aunt of the teen who was killed, urging the authorities to improve security.
“It’s not normal for young people to lose their lives like this. It’s unacceptable, just unacceptable. They’re children,” she said.
Stella, a 35-year-old who declined to give her surname, gripped the hand of her three-year-old son, whose trousers were dotted with blood.
She said her 14-year-old nephew — who was wounded in the thigh — and young son had been on the way to see their grandmother without her when the shooting broke out.
“I’m living a nightmare and furious that I almost lost my son,” she said.
Angeline, an 18-year-old nail technician who did not give her surname for fear of reprisal, said she had been coming back from grocery shopping with her mother and dog when the shooting occurred.
“We heard gunshots — about 10, twice — and I yanked my mother by the collar to get back into our building,” she said.
“I just saw a lot of people — people in balaclavas and dressed all in black — running through the grass.”
Heavier fines for consumers?
The young adult said the neighbourhood felt increasingly insecure.
“Things have been constantly getting worse here. People are afraid, shootings are frequent,” she said.
“In the afternoons, the children’s playgrounds are deserted because parents are too scared,” she added.
Nunez said police would continue to dismantle drug rings, but he would soon urge parliament to help increase fines against drug consumers.
“At some point, consumers need to come to their senses,” he said.
“When people use narcotics for recreational purposes, the end result is that one day we end up here… with a 15-year-old who has lost his life.”
He said the plan would increase the fine for drug consumption from 200 to 500 euros, and even suspend or remove an offender’s driving licence in some cases.
